DX LISTENING DIGEST 5-176, October 11, 2005
Incorporating REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING
edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com
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For restrixions and searchable 2005 contents archive see
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NEXT AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1289:
Wed 0930 WOR WWCR 9985
Wed 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
SUMMARY: http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1289.html [now available]
AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO Extra 62:
Wed 2200 WOR WBCQ 7415 [first airing of each edition]
Wed 2300 WOR WBCQ 17495-CUSB
Thu 0900 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2
Thu 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
Thu 1800 WOR KLC
Thu 2030 WOR WWCR 15825
Thu 2200 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2
Thu 2330 WOR R. Veronica 106.5
Fri 0000 WOR WTND-LP 106.3 Macomb IL
Fri 0200 WOR ACBRadio Mainstream [repeated 2-hourly thru 2400]
Fri 0930 WOR WWCR 9985 [NEW]
Fri 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
Fri 2000 WOR RFPI [repeated 4-hourly thru Sat 1500]
Fri 2000 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2
Sat 0400 WOR VoiceCorps Reading Service, WOSU-FM subcarrier, cable
Sat 0800 WOR WRN to Eu, Au, NZ, WorldSpace AfriStar, AsiaStar
Sat 0855 WOR WNQM Nashville TN 1300
Sat 1000 WOR WPKN Bridgeport CT 89.5 & WPKM Montauk LINY 88.7
Sat 1600 WOR R. Veronica 106.5
Sat 1730 WOR WRN to North America
(including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140)
Sat 2100 WOR WRMI 7385
Sat 2300 WOR Radio Studio X 1584 http://www.radiostudiox.it/
Sun 0230 WOR WWCR 5070
Sun 0300 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB
Sun 0600 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2
Sun 0630 WOR WWCR 3210
Sun 0830 WOR WRMI 7385 [from WRN]
Sun 0830 WOR WRN to North America, also WLIO-TV Lima OH SAP
(including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140)
Sun 0830 WOR KSFC Spokane WA 91.9
Sun 0830 WOR WXPR Rhinelander WI 91.7 91.9 100.9
Sun 0830 WOR WDWN Auburn NY 89.1 [unconfirmed]
Sun 0830 WOR KTRU Houston TX 91.7 [occasional]
Sun 1300 WOR KRFP-LP Moscow ID 92.5
Sun 1400 WOR WRMI 7385
Sun 1730 WOR WRN1 to North America
(including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140)
Sun 1900 WOR RNI
Mon 0300 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB
Mon 0330 WOR WSUI Iowa City IA 910
Mon 0415 WOR WBCQ 7415 [usually closer to 0418-]
Mon 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
Mon 1800 WOR RFPI [repeated 4-hour thru Tue 1400]
Tue 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
Tue 2330 WOR WBCQ 7415 [usually but temporary]
Wed 0000 WOR CJOY INTERNET RADIO plug-in required
Wed 0930 WOR WWCR 9985
Wed 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours
Latest edition of this schedule version, with hotlinks to station
sites and audio, is at: http://www.worldofradio.com/radioskd.html
WRN ON DEMAND [from Fri]:
http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24
OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL]:
http://www.worldofradio.com/audiomid.html
or http://wor.worldofradio.org
WORLD OF RADIO Extra 62 (high version):
(stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/worx62h.ram
(download) http://www.w4uvh.net/worx62h.rm
[Extra 62 is the same as CONTINENT OF MEDIA 05-08; high adds WOR open]
WORLD OF RADIO Extra 62 (low version):
(stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/com0508.ram
(download) http://www.w4uvh.net/com0508.rm
(summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/com0508.html
WORLD OF RADIO Extra 62 in true SW sound of Alex`s mp3 [anticipated]
(stream) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_10-12-05.m3u
(download) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_10-12-05.mp3
WORLD OF RADIO Extra 62 downloads in studio-quality mp3 [soon]:
(high) http://www.obriensweb.com/worx62h.mp3
(low) http://www.obriensweb.com/worx62.mp3
WORLD OF RADIO PODCAST: www.obriensweb.com/wor.xml (currently: 1284,
Extra 60, 1285, 1286, 1287, 1288, Extra 61, 1289, Extra 62)
WORLD OF RADIO ON MYSTERY RADIO. Oct 11 at 1525 I was passing the
frequency 6220 when I heard a familiar voice. Indeed, World of Radio
1289 was in progress. And when it was over, the ID was "Mystery Radio"
(Jari Savolainen, Finland, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) Euro-
pirate, so that would be Tuesday around 1500 UT, tho unlikely on a
strict schedule (gh)
DX/SWL/MEDIA PROGRAMS Oct. 11: http://worldofradio.com/dxpgms.html
EDITOR`S NOTE. Yes, I took almost a week off, so this issue contains
only a fraxion of the material that has piled up; it is a mixture of
new and older, and especially BBCM items you may not have seen
elsewhere.
** ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS. At 0000 UT 10/12/2005 I copied some
English with an Indian accent on 4760. The signal was pretty weak and
faded out by 0115. I was not able to get an ID but I'm pretty sure it
was AIR Port Blair, Andaman Islands. With geomagnetic conditions quiet
the polar path between Florida and Nicobar would be open at 0000 UT.
73 & GUD DX, (Thomas F. Giella, KN4LF, Lakeland, FL, USA, Icom R-75
120-11 Meter Dipole, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ANTARCTICA. R. Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel, 15475.98, 2100-2104*
Oct 7; tune-in to Spanish ballad. 2102 closing announcements in
Spanish, ID, and mention of Base Esperanza. Surprisingly good signal
(Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ARGENTINA. R. Nacional, 6059.96, 2315-2220+ Oct 6, Spanish talk, LA
music, very weak, but very good on // 15345.24. Also on 6059.96 at
1045-1055+ Oct 7, Spanish talk, ballads; very weak, but fair signal on
// 11710.65.
Feeder of R. La Red, 15820-LSB, 2155-2220+ Oct 6, Spanish talk, 2200
time pips and Spanish news; weak but readable (Brian Alexander,
Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** AUSTRALIA. The ABC would like to advise that it is in the process
of upgrading its Alice Springs, Katherine and Tennant Creek shortwave
Local Radio services. this work is being undertaken to provide greater
reliability of these services.
Each service will be required to be switched off for approximately
four to six weeks while replacement transmitters are installed. The
Tennant Creek transmitter will be the first to be upgraded and will be
turned off on Monday 10 October. . .
http://www.abc.net.au/reception/news/051006_shortwave_radio_services.htm
I heard Alice Springs for the first time on 8 Oct. from 1010 UT on
2310 kHz with a fairly decent signal (Dan Srebnick, Aberdeen, NJ, Oct
8, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
When I checked the site at 1755 UT Oct 11, the following had been
added:
...The Tennant Creek transmitter will be the first to be upgraded and
will be turned off on Monday 10 October.
From this date those listeners who usually tune to the Tennant Creek
shortwave service will need to retune to the Alice Springs service to
continue to receive ABC Local Radio. Listeners who have problems
tuning to the Alice Springs service during the day should attempt to
tune to 11880 kHz.
Further announcements will be made once a timetable for the Alice
Springs and Katherine upgrades are confirmed.
The ABC apologises for any inconvenience caused by these changes.
Please contact the ABC’s Reception Advice Line on 1300 13 9994 if you
require further information regarding the transmitter upgrades or
frequency changes.
Northern Territory ABC Shortwave Local Radio frequencies in October
... Day frequency Night frequency
Alice Springs 4835 kHz 2310 kHz
Katherine 5025 kHz 2485 kHz
Tennant Creek 4835 kHz/11880 kHz 2310 kHz (via gh, DXLD)
T.C. was 4910, 2325 kHz. So where is 11880 from? Probably Shepparton
which is used at other times by RA. What kind of ``upgrading``? (Glenn
Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BELARUS [non]. GERMANY: DEUTSCHE WELLE BROADCASTS ANGER BELARUS,
RUSSIA | Text of report by German news magazine Der Spiegel website on
10 October
A new radio programme by Deutsche Welle for listeners in
authoritarian-ruled Belarus is creating tension between Berlin and
Moscow.
The daily 15-minute broadcast in Russian, which can also be found on
the Internet, offers information on the opposition in Belarus, for
instance, that is not reported by state-controlled media in the
country of President Alexander Lukashenko. The European Union is
subsidizing the programme on the air with an initial amount of 138,000
euros annually.
Sergey Yastrzhembskiy, President Vladimir Putin's authorized agent in
charge of relations with the EU, now accuses the Europeans of using
"methods from the Cold War arsenal." According to Yastrzhembskiy, the
shortwave programme is a form of "interference in the affairs of a
sovereign state" - that is, Belarus, whose regime counts itself among
the Kremlin's allies.
Moscow and Minsk fear that Lukashenko 's opponents will attract a
crowd, since the opposition recently agreed on physicist Alexander
Milinkevich as the joint candidate for the presidential election next
July. Yet the concerns of those in power about the destabilizing
influence of Western media is possibly unfounded.
A study commissioned by Deutsche Welle shows that more than 83 per
cent of Belarus citizens have never received Russian-language
programmes from the German broadcasting station. More than 42 per cent
of those polled are even of the opinion that the state-controlled
media in Minsk portray the politics and life of Western countries
"appropriately." Hence the director of Deutsche Welle, Erik
Bettermann, places his hopes primarily "on the coming generations" in
that Slavic country. Source: Der Spiegel website, Hamburg, in German
10 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** BRAZIL. BRAZIL/USA: SIX BRAZILIAN STATIONS BROADCASTING HIGH-
DEFINITION RADIO | Text of press release by US-based Harris
Corporation on 5 October
Cincinnati, 5 October: Harris Corporation's Broadcast Communications
Division (BCD) today announced that three Brazilian radio broadcasters
have selected Harris as the exclusive digital transmission vendor for
their HD [high definition] Radio launches.
The country's three largest radio broadcasters, Radio Bandeirantes,
Radio Globo and RBS Group recently announced plans to launch HD Radio
broadcasts on 26 September, commemorating the 70th anniversary of
AESP, a radio and television emissions association based in Sao Paolo,
and Brazil's National Day of Radio. The HD Radio standard will allow
all three broadcasters to simulcast analogue and digital broadcasts
over the same band, ensuring their listeners a choice to go digital or
continue receiving analogue broadcasts. By selecting Harris, all three
radio groups have also ensured enhanced business models for their AM
stations, enhanced audio quality and data capability for their FM
stations, and a reduction in monthly operating costs due to
intelligent combining techniques.
A total of six stations - one FM and one AM from each group - are now
transmitting in HD Radio:
Radio Bandeirantes selected a Harris Z-SeriesTM Z16HDs FM transmitter
for Band News FM, and an IBOC equipment rack to upgrade an existing
Harris DXD100 AM transmitter to HD Radio. Both stations are located in
Sao Paulo, the largest city of Brazil.
Radio Globo purchased a Harris Mini-HDTM 600 Watt FM transmitter for
CBN Radio in Sao Paulo, and an IBOC equipment rack to upgrade an
existing Harris 3DX-50 AM transmitter for Radio Tiradentes in Belo
Horizonte.
RBS Group purchased a Harris Mini-HDTM 600 Watt FM transmitter for
Itapema FM, and an IBOC equipment rack to upgrade an existing Harris
DXD100 AM transmitter to HD Radio for the Radio Gaucha AM station.
Both stations are located in Porto Alegre, in the southern portion of
Brazil.
"Harris has been actively working with Latin American radio
broadcasters and government officials on digital radio since we held
the first international on-air HD Radio demonstration ever in Porto
Alegre in March 2003," said Nahuel Villegas, Caribbean and Latin
America regional director for Harris Broadcast Communications
Division. "The more than 100 Latin American broadcasters who attended
that first event experienced a demonstration that showed the vastly
improved audio quality and compelling business case afforded by
digital radio. The selection of Harris as the exclusive transmission
provider for Brazil's maiden HD Radio launch is a result of our
efforts over the past several years, and we are privileged to be at
the technological center of this enormous radio event for Latin
America."
Harris provided all three groups with FM combining methods that reduce
monthly transmission-related operational costs. Radio Bandeirantes has
employed Harris' exclusive Split-Level combining method, which can
reduce operational costs by up to 10 per cent over the traditional
method of high-level combining FM and HD Radio transmitters using a
10dB coupler. Radio Globo and RBS Group are employing separate
amplification, a feature of the Mini-HDTM Series. Mini-HD Series
transmitters greatly reduce the power reject load that is common with
high-level combining. By transmitting over two separate antennas,
broadcasters use only 10 per cent of the digital wattage output
compared to high-level combining. Transmitter power, initial capital
investment and overall power consumption are greatly reduced as a
result.
Harris has consistently demonstrated strong commitment to supporting
customer needs and digital adoption in the region, and was the first
vendor to present HD Radio demonstrations at Mexico's CIRT Show in
October 2003 and Argentina's CAPER Show in October 2004.
"We congratulate all three pioneering radio groups in Brazil for their
launches, as they are leading the way for many others soon to follow,"
said Debra Huttenburg, vice president and general manager of the
Harris BCD Radio Broadcast Systems business unit. "We believe that
Brazil's historical decision to go digital now is a milestone that
will influence and encourage neighboring countries to take a closer
look at the various digital radio standards that exist today, and
further examine the many benefits afforded by transitioning to
digital." Source: Harris Corporation press release, Cincinnati, in
English 5 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** BULGARIA. The http://www.predavatel.com website about Bulgarian
radio and TV stations has been considerably expanded. Transmitter site
pictures can be found on the pages accessible via
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/map.htm
So far I found these AM facilities:
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/3/plo.htm
--- Padarsko shortwave site 20 km outside Plovdiv, built between 1976
and 1979 by the Soviet GSPI-RTV company. The text mentions also the
installation of 10 x 15 kW transmitters in 1986?! One rotatable
antenna and various 4/8 dipole walls, i.e. no curtains but fixed
structures. Are they representative for Soviet high power designs?
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/1/sof.htm
--- Sofia 261/828/963, exact location of station specified as Vakarel.
Three masts are apparently grouped as a directional antenna, probably
further two ones as another directional system. Apparently dating back
to the thirties is a single Blaw-Knox mast (longwave?). Note also
below the Vakarel pictures the Bulgarian Intersputnik uplink station,
with a typical building and the original antenna mounted on its roof.
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/8/ple.htm
--- Pleven 594/1296, exact location of station specified as Grivitsa.
The antennas (pipe masts and a triangular system) are typical GDR
designs, so obviously not only a 250 kW transmitter has been delivered
(Pleven-594 is a Funkwerk Köpenick transmitter like the ones used by
the GDR stations on 576/657/693/882/1044/1359/1575); instead it
appears that the whole Grivitsa station was kind of a turn-key
project. And even more intriguing: Shortwave curtains! Were these
installations reserved for skywave jamming into the Soviet Union?
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/4/sta.htm
--- Stara Zagora. I think the ancient Blaw-Knox is in use for 873 and
the two newer masts are for the 500 kW transmitter on 1161 (and were
built together with it; the feeder line design suggests a Soviet
installation?)
http://www.predavatel.com/bg/6/shu.htm
--- On the second row of photos a site attributed only to three FM
transmitters, but this appears to be the Shumen 828/963 station. And
what was the previous purpose of the mast on the last row, now home of
a low power FM outlet but appearing to be a dismantled AM antenna?
(Kai Ludwig, Germany, Oct 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BURKINA FASO. RTV Burkina, 5030.01, Sept 30 2100-0002* Oct 1;
French talk, phone talk, Afro-pops. Fair. Gene Scott [COSTA RICA] not
on this frequency lately. Scott still noted on their other frequencies
(Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
5030, BURKINA FASO, (Tentative ) R. Burkina, 2310-2332, Oct. 4,
French, Mix of French raps and Afropos with occasional English rap
tossed in. OM between selections with numerous mentions of
"Ouagagougou" which may or may not have been part of an ID. Fair.
First logging here in quite some time. Reactivation? (Scott R.
Barbour, Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, 200' Beverage antennas, dxldyg via
DXLD)
** CANADA. CBC EMPLOYEES ACCEPT TENTATIVE DEAL, OFFICIALLY ENDING
LABOUR DISPUTE --- MIKE OLIVEIRA
TORONTO (CP) - After seven acrimonious weeks of negotiations and
feuding, the CBC labour dispute is officially over. But the fighting
may not be.
The Canadian Media Guild said Sunday that 88.4 per cent of the 3,514
members who voted chose to accept the proposed contract.
But it will take a few days before programming is back to normal and
the union warns workers may not be all smiles when the cameras and
microphones are off.
Most of the CBC's 5,500 unionized workers are expected back at work
Tuesday but it'll take days, in some cases even weeks, to get
everything back up to speed.
"The National will be back by Tuesday or Wednesday," said Jason
MacDonald, spokesman for the CBC.
"From a radio point of view, Tuesday we'll have the morning show
broadcast nationally out of Montreal, and the drive-home show will
be out of Toronto. By Wednesday, some of the regional shows will be
back and by Thursday, everybody will be back."
Don Cherry, Ron MacLean and other familiar CBC faces already made
their return to TV on Saturday's Hockey Night in Canada and the
network was to air a CFL doubleheader on Monday.
Union spokesman Arnold Amber said workers are happy to be back on
the job but haven't necessarily gotten over their built-up anger.
"Personally, I think CBC management has a very, very large task to
get people back onside. This was a very, very difficult issue," he
said.
"It's going to take some time to get everything right side up. They
were really offended by being locked out, they regarded it as a
great injustice," Amber said.
MacDonald acknowledged the mood might be icy at times but said he
thinks everyone will pull together to get the CBC back up and
running.
"Nobody would deny (there may be) strain between employees and
managers but everyone's a professional, I think. And most people
just want to get back to work," he said.
"It may be a bit uncomfortable at first but I think people just want
to get back."
Suanne Kelman, associate chair of journalism at Ryerson University
in Toronto, said the worst thing the CBC can do is dwell on the
lockout in any way.
"They have to remember their problems are not the public's problems,
there should be nothing about the lockout when they get back, they
should just get back to programming as soon as possible," she said.
MacDonald said there is no specific directive from management to not
mention the lockout on the air.
"If an individual host comes back on the air this week and mentions
it, that's up to their discretion and their producers. Nobody's
being given an order to say or not say anything about it," he said.
Amber also said he can't imagine CBC workers trying to bring too
much attention to the lockout.
"Quite obviously, people are going to say, 'Well, we're back,' and
make note of the fact that the labour dispute is over. However, I
don't think anybody is going to break our professional approach to
broadcasting and go into a personal song and dance about what this
all meant."
It's still unclear exactly where public sympathy lies and the CBC
will have to figure out if their audiences left for the competition or
became fed up with the prolonged labour dispute, which began Aug.
15.
Kelman said other broadcasters made great use of the CBC's
programming lag to boost their profile among the CBC's audience.
"For news, they may have some problems because I think some people
may have discovered CTV news is better than they remembered," she
said. "It depends on how betrayed viewers and listeners feel."
She said some may be completely unsympathetic to the CBC cause and
hold a grudge long into the future.
"Because people feel it's their own tax dollars involved, I think
it's going to take a while before this one fades." The official tally
in the ratification vote was 3,106 votes for, 394 against and 14
ballots were either spoiled, or challenged and not accepted.
The labour dispute centred on a CBC plan to hire more contract
workers, which the union opposed. The deal caps contract workers at
9.5 per cent of the full-time work force.
CBC wages are to rise by 12.6 per cent over the life of the contract,
which runs through March 31, 2009, including full retroactivity and a
$1,000 signing bonus.
(c) The Canadian Press, 2005 (via Mike Cooper, Oct 11, DXLD)
** CANADA. CBC LOCKOUT TO END AS EMPLOYEES ACCEPT TENTATIVE DEAL
Sun, 09 Oct 2005 CBC News
CBC employees have voted to accept their tentative deal with
management, officially ending the labour dispute. The Canadian Media
Guild said 3,514 ballots were cast and 88.4 per cent voted in favour
of ratification.
Most of the CBC's 5,500 unionized workers are expected to head back to
work on Tuesday. Some regular programming has already returned,
including Saturday night's broadcast of Hockey Night in Canada.
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/10/09/CBCLO20051009.html
(via Mike Terry, Oct 9, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
I also note that the CBC website has been fully restored, with access
to sites for individual programs and for local CBC stations.
A wire service news story I read at work gives an overview of how
things will slowly return to normal on the English service. I'll
paraphrase from memory:
- Monday is Thanksgiving in Canada, and I don't know what's going on
in terms of programming.
- Tuesday is when most CBC workers return to work. There will be a
national morning show broadcast from Montreal and a national afternoon
drive show broadcast from Toronto.
- Wednesday is when some regional programming will return to the air.
The CBC's flagship TV evening national news program should also return
Wednesday.
- Thursday is when all of CBC radio is supposed to return to normal.
(Ricky Leong, Calgary, Alta., Oct 10, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
CBC Radio One is airing a full slate of programming today, but nearly
all of it is repeats.
CBC Overnight -- the melange of international broadcasts assembled by
the World Radio Network (WRN), is back on the schedule.
It looks like programming decisions are being made day-to-day,
depending on how quickly program staffs get back to being productive;
there is only a single day's program guide provided on the CBC website
(Richard Cuff / Allentown, PA USA, Oct 11, swprograms via DXLD)
At the end of the national morning program today, Montreal-based host
Bernard St. Laurent (of C'est la Vie) said only some stations would
broadcast a national morning show program tomorrow. If you want a
taste of these short-lived replacement programs, you can try to catch
them on 6160 kHz from CKZN St. John's or CKZU Vancouver. (And there's
the Internet, of course.) The restoration of the national newsroom
probably means RCI's Internet and satellite services are returning to
normal with CBC news on the hour.
As I was typing this, CBC Calgary ran a local weather forecast after
the news at 1800 UT, the first bit of local programming for nearly two
months. The announcer began by saying the local lunchtime and
afternoon programs would return tomorrow, while the local morning show
would return Thursday. I note, though, that nothing is being done to
restore Radio Two right now (Ricky Leong, Calgary, Alta., ibid.)
Same here in Vancouver region. The hosts and newsreaders came on air
and then they went to the Lockout repeats such as Richardson`s Roundup
at noon.
Full noon show tomorrow, they promise. But I expect our morning show
will be back Wednesday if they can.
It takes time to get the old steam engines running again, and clearing
the email, voicemail backlogs and finding who did come back and didn't
leave for another job.
And there is the hunt in the corridors for the bodies of management
who stayed inside during the lockout. (Dessicated manager corpses --
an energy source when burnt)
They haven't got the pronunciation corps ready and still mispronounce
putative German Chancellor Merkel's name wrong. (It's a hard G, An guh
la).
In B.C., the Telus strike is not over and this will cause
complications on restoring any lines or cell phone cut by that
company.
I'm wondering if any host on Radio 2 will be mean enough to play an
hour filled with several versions of Peer Gynt, Satie's 3 Gymnopedies,
1812 Overture and other classical chestnuts that managers thought that
audience deserved (Day Say, ibid.)
** CANADA. JUST PULL THE PLUG ON THE CBC ALREADY
Byline: Rondi Adamson Date: 10/11/2005
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1011/p09s02-coop.html
(TORONTO) --- There is something sweetly revealing about the fact that
the NHL, a primarily American organization, is in large part
responsible for bringing an end to the nearly two-month strike of
Canada's public broadcaster.
At issue was the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's (CBC) plan to
increase its number of contract workers. When the CBC's biggest union,
the Canadian Media Guild (CMG) objected, they found themselves locked
out, and the CBC found itself airing Coronation Street reruns, BBC
news, Antiques Roadshow, management-hosted radio shows consisting only
of music, and movies. The latter inspired Michael Moore to throw his
heft around in the debate. When the CBC aired Mr. Moore's "Bowling for
Columbine," mid-lockout, he issued a statement expressing dismay at
the treatment of union members, and shock that, "the great and
honorable CBC," was, "behaving like an American corporation."
I'm willing to cast doubt on the greatness and honor of the CBC. But
they have shown some sense in behaving like a corporation, American or
otherwise. And with hockey season upon us, an agreement was reached,
just in time for the CBC to carry out its lucrative contract with the
NHL.
The CBC, on both television and radio, is taxpayer funded to the tune
of just under $1 billion (Canadian) a year. True believers in Canada
maintain it keeps Canadians connected to each other, and above all,
keeps us from becoming - oh, the humanity - American. The latter is a
peculiar concern, since, even operating at full force, CBC's
English-language television is ever defeated in the ratings by
American networks and cable stations.
It is a tossup as to whether the CBC, or socialized healthcare,
represents the third rail of Canadian politics. Cries of panic went
out in August when the lockout began. What will Canadians do without
our national voice? How will the country hold together ... inasmuch as
it ever has? And worse, how will we understand what's going on out
there, without access to the rarefied CBC understanding of world
events?
I was grateful to have been spared the rarefied CBC understanding of,
for example, hurricane Katrina. It is a safe bet that it would have
been --- but for the accents --- similar to the BBC spin on Mother
Nature's wrath, a take which reportedly caused British Prime Minister
Tony Blair to denounce it as "full of hatred of America," and
"gloating," at the country's, and George Bush's, misfortune. The CBC
has earned, from conservative bloggers and websites, the nickname,
"Caliphate Broadcasting Corporation." But while Canada may have a
public broadcaster similar to Britain's, we don't, unfortunately, have
any politicians with the courage to echo Mr. Blair. Nor do we have any
with the spine to suggest the CBC should be privatized, in spite of
the eminent springiness of Canadians in the face of their CBC-free
lives these past weeks.
According to a Decima Research poll taken during the lockout, 61
percent of respondents said the labor dispute had no impact at all on
their lives. Only 10 percent considered it a "major inconvenience."
Most telling was that, in the 10 percent who felt seriously
inconvenienced, most were those who voted for Canada's left-of-center
Liberal and New Democratic parties. And many were older people, for
whom the CBC has no doubt played a larger role, than for someone who
grew up with the Internet and hundreds of radio and TV stations.
But even if one were politically in tune with the CBC, there remains
the question of personal preference, versus whether that preference
should be imposed on others. Should citizens have to pay for something
they clearly don't require --- and have barely missed?
Fifty-three years ago, when CBC television was born, there were scarce
other stations in Canada. But for that connection in our
geographically enormous country, which has only a tenth of the
population of the United States, many Canadians were isolated. During
World War II, when radio coverage of events overseas may have been all
that allowed a mother to know what her son was facing, a national
broadcaster was desirable.
In 2005, Canadian homes have access to hundreds of TV and radio
stations, from all over the world (including private Canadian
stations). Does it make sense to require citizens to pay for one they
may not want, when they can choose to pay for others they do want? It
is hard to see the CBC as a public service, least of all an essential
one, in spite of the best efforts of some of Canada's artistic elite
to peddle that notion. One wonders whether such people have a clue
what things appear on the average Canadian's radar.
Hockey is one of those things. And fittingly, it is a principal reason
the dispute is being settled. It would be a crushing blow for the CBC
were the NHL to sign a contract with another Canadian network.
I strongly suspect another reason for the settlement is that CBC
management and employees have twigged that few have pined for them.
Should the unprecedented ever happen, and Canadian politicians develop
the backbone required to pull the CBC's plug, the death knell would be
most welcome and overdue.
* Rondi Adamson is a Canadian writer. (c) Copyright 2005 The Christian
Science Monitor. All rights reserved (via Jim Moats, DXLD)
** COLOMBIA. A pesar de la negativa de sus directivos, Marfil Estéreo
estuvo fuera del aire el 06/10 y el 07/10, en los 5910 kHz. El primer
día estaba Deutsche Welle a las 0430 UT, y el segundo, Ucrania en
inglés a las 0010. Ni rastros de La Voz de Tu Conciencia en 6010, a la
0130, del 07/10. Por el contrario Radio Suecia sin ningún tipo de QRM
en inglés a la misma hora. 73s y buen DX (Adán González, Catia La Mar,
Estado Vargas, VENEZUELA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Glenn, greetings again from Venezuela. Conditions are awful, high QRN,
plus some kind of digital transmissions all over making DXing harder
than ever at my location.
Marfil Estéreo on 5910 was heard today (Oct. 09) with pretty
overmodulated signal.
UNID on 5810, (Oct 09) heard a couple, YL/MA with Colombian accent
with extended religious comments, checked later and found just as a
whisper buried on noise with llanera and Mexican music (Fernando
Viloria, Guacara - Carabobo State - Venezuela, Rx: Icom IC-720
transceiver; Antenna: 1/4 wave sloper; Antenna tuner: MFJ - 956
(passive), DX LISTENING DIGEST) 5810 very likely a mixing product
between 6010 and 5910 transmitters, audio probably same as 6010 (gh)
** COLOMBIA. R. Líder, 6139.78, 0230-0250+ Sept 30, Oct 2; Spanish
ballads, IDs between songs. Strong but mixing with Cuba on 6140. Líder
actually stronger than Cuba. Irregular; heard for several nights
(Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
6139.81, R. Líder, 1014-1033, Oct. 7, Spanish, rough copy at tune-in
of OM with talks and music. Improved by 1025 with full "Desde Bogotá,
Colombia, Radio Líder" ID announcement at 1030. Poor/fair (Scott R.
Barbour, Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, 200' Beverage antennas, dxldyg via
DXLD)
6139.78, 0500-, Radio Líder, Oct 9. Decent reception with easy
listening Spanish music, and frequent IDs simply as 'Radio Líder' but
a full ID with 'Desde Bogotá', etc. at 0502 and back into a Spanish
ballad. One of the strongest LAm stations on the air these days
(Volodya Salmaniw, Victoria, BC, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** COSTA RICA. DGS 5030: see BURKINA FASO
** COSTA RICA [non]. Netherlands Antilles: Those interested in QSLing
the AWR broadcast via Bonaire, should hurry, because it will not be
continued in the winter season. This was confirmed by Claudio Dedio of
the AWR Frequency Management Office. The Spanish broadcast has been on
the air since the winter season 2003/04: in winter 2300-0100 / in
summer 2200-2400 UT on 6165 kHz (Dr. Hansjoerg Biener, Nürnberg
http://www.biener-media.de Oct 7, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** DJIBOUTI. RT Djibouti, 4780, 2200-2306* Oct 6 and 7; presumed with
vernacular talk, local Arabic style music. 2301 Kor`an. 2306 abruptly
off. On later than usual; normal scheduled sign-off is 2000. Strong-
very good, heard for two days (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX
LISTENING DIGEST) No doubt on late for Ramadan (gh, DXLD)
** ECUADOR. It seems HCJB has resorted to the no data QSL card
recently (Mick Delmage, Oct CIDX Messenger via DXLD)
** ECUADOR. Quito 11/10 2005, Tuesday evening edition: 5999.266, Voz
de Upano) reactivated Lago Agrio, (Ecuador) Comments, photos and
recordings at: http://www.malm-ecuador.com 73s (Björn Malm, Quito,
Ecuador, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Viz.:
The last time I noted this Ecuadorian jungle station was in December
2004 ((See Archive 4/12 2004). Is active just short periods so go out
hunting this evening or tomorrow. The recording is made just one hour
ago. Their program format is education and some Ecuadorian music in
between (via DXLD) Time?
** FINLAND. Some additional background on the DAB shutdown in Finland:
Since 1997 only a few hundreds DAB receivers were sold. The now
decommissioned DAB transmitter network covered 40 percent of the
country. (Source: radionyt.dk via Peer-Axel Kroeske) (Kai Ludwig,
Germany, Oct 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** FRANCE. RADIO FRANCE INTERNATIONALE TO GIVE PRIORITY TO AFRICA |
Excerpt from report by French news agency AFP
Paris, 11 October: Radio France Internationale's (RFI) priorities are
Africa, the Middle East and Europe "in that order", its managing
director, Antoine Schwarz, told a press conference on Tuesday [11
October], adding that all RFI's languages "are important".
Regarding Africa, Schwarz mentioned several priorities: developing
specific programme content, improving ease of listening and continuing
to develop the FM network, increasing journalistic coverage and being
"even closer" to the audience by transferring its frequencies. RFI
hopes in particular especially to improve broadcasts to the Maghreb
region. In Morocco, RFI has applied for 10 frequencies.
The new schedule for the Arabic language stream, RMC Moyen-Orient,
will be explained at another press conference and will be in place at
the end of Ramadan.
In Europe, where "RFI is making a reasonable impact, we believe that
more can be done with the great asset that this station represents,"
Schwarz said. [Passage omitted] Source: AFP news agency, Paris, in
French 1510 gmt 11 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** GERMANY. Today Deutsche Welle started an additional morning
broadcast in Urdu: 0030-0100 on 7130, 9505 and 9825. (Source: DW press
release) (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Oct 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) cf
PAKISTAN [non]
** GUATEMALA. R. Cultural Coatán, 4779.98, 0220-0233* Oct 8. Spanish
talk with short breaks of religious music, 0232 ID and off. Poor-weak
(Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** HONDURAS. R. Misiones Internacional[es], 3340, 0225-0330+ Oct 7,
talk in local language. 0302 ID. Some short breaks of religious music
but mostly just constant talk (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** HUNGARY. R. Budapest, 10000.0 kHz, *2200-2258* Sept 29, 30, Oct 1.
Punch-up error? Spur? Strong, mixing with WWV. Talk in listed
Hungarian. Brief music breaks, IS and off. Heard // 9850 and 12030;
listed // 6025 not heard (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
This could be 3975+6025. But I guess 3975 is not listed at that time
Brian was listening. By the way, 3975 has a strong harmonic on 7950
(Jari Savolainen, Finland, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDIA. Dear Friends, the following are some news on AIR stations
Imphal : Noted signing on at 0030 again on 4775 (ex 0000)
Several stations were noted with early sign-ons due to the Navaratri
festival season.
Kolkata : Noted early sign on at 2325 UT (4.55 am)
Gangtok: 1404 3390 noted already on today when I tuned in around 2345
UT (5.15 am)
The stations in Orissa were also noted already on today when I tuned
in around 2345. Though Jeypore was noted on 1467, the parallel SW
channel was not heard on 5040 (maybe in skip).
There is no reported damage to any AIR station in the latest
earthquake that hit Kashmir area. 73 (Jose Jacob, VU2JOS, National
Institute of Amateur Radio, Hyderabad, India, Oct 9, dx_india via
DXLD)
** INDIA. AIR finalises move from 3 MHz to 5 MHz --- Updated 7 October
2005 --- All India Radio has finalised the move from 3 MHz to 5 MHz
effective 30th October:
Bhopal 4810 kHz
Gangtok 4870 kHz
Shimla 4980 kHz
(from http://www.dxasia.info via DXLD) Not the same as planned (gh)
** INDONESIA. 9680, RRI Jakarta, Oct 5 (Wed.), 1000-1045; KGRE program
was preëmpted by Ramadan programming; two men conversing about
Ramadan, had several on-air phone conversations; IDs for ``FM
Jakarta,`` 1055 Chinese language station signed on (PRC or ROC?)
Reception fair to good before 1055 (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, RX340 +
T2FD antenna, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
9524.9, VOI, Oct 7, 0925-0941, believe this was last heard in early
Aug.; assume on again for Ramadan but having transmitter problems
(signal cutting in and out) and abruptly ended at 0941; ID: ``If you
wish to know more about Radio Republik Indonesia’s Overseas Service
you may contact us by e-mail at voi @ rri-online.com To access a
transcript of our daily news, please visit the web site of Radio
Republik Indonesia`s Overseas Service at http://www.rri-online.com ``
(Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, RX340 + T2FD antenna, ibid.)
** INTERNATIONAL. 48th Jamboree on the Air (Oct. 15-16 2005)
JOTA is an annual event in which about 500,000 Scouts and Guides all
over the world make contact with each other by means of amateur radio.
It is a real Jamboree during which Scouting experiences are exchanged
and ideas are shared, thus contributing to the world brotherhood of
Scouting. The JOTA is a world-wide event.
Units may operate for 48 hours or any part thereof, from Saturday
00.00 h until Sunday 24.00 h local time. It is for members of the
World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM), and also for members
of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).
Additional information is available on the JOTA organizer's web pages
at: http://www.home.zonnet.nl/worldscout
(News from the Canadian Amateur Radio Bulletin http://www.hfradio.net
via Vernon Ikeda, CIDX Messenger via DXLD)
** INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM. xxxxxxxxxx Breaking News xxxxxxxxxx
SECOND EDITION OF AL QAEDA NEWS BULLETIN AIRS --- AKI October 4, 2005
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=CultureAndMedia&loid=8.0.214968657&par=0
CRW Editor`s Note: Video can be seen at this location:
http://www.clandestineradio.com/audio/meast_aq_caliphate_051003.rmvb
Rome, 4 Oct. (AKI) - The second edition of 'Sout al Khalifa', or Voice
of the Caliphate, the 'news bulletin' produced by al-Qaeda mouthpiece
the Global Islamic Media Front, has been broadcast on the Internet.
The latest programme, which lasts around 19 minutes, opens with news
from Palestine, and dedicates lengthy coverage to the kidnapping and
killing of Sasson Nuriel, the Israeli businessman seized by a cell of
the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The bulletin replays the video
showing the hostage and repeats the allegation that he was a member of
the Israeli security services.
The 'newsreader' - who has a subtle Egyptian accent and appears to be
the same as appeared in the first edition aired on 21 September - then
goes on to speak of the security situation in Gaza, which is described
as highly volatile because of the Israeli air strikes.
The al-Qaeda bulletin also dedicates time to the last video featuring
al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri and talks of Afghanistan
and the suicide attack carried out last week by a Taliban bomber who
drove a motorbike into a group of Afghan soldiers boarding a bus
outside their training base in Kabul.
This is followed by the obligatory 'commercial break', in which they
announce that in the next edition of the programme they will broadcast
a message to Muslims working in the communications field.
The news bulletin then moves on to Iraq, and relays the latest
statements issued in the last few days by various Islamic groups
active in the country. The presenter also returns to the subject of
the hurricanes in the United States, which were mentioned in the first
edition, this time condemning the Muslim countries who sent aid to
help the victims.
The news programme wraps up with a news story about Nigeria, where it
says Muslims have been threatened by non-Muslims, like the Islamic
citizens of Darfur in Sudan, who, the bulletin says, are coming under
pressure from European states who plan to drive them from their
territory because of the presence of oil deposits in their region.
The 'set' for the news programme is the same as the first edition. The
face of the newsreader is covered and a copy of the Koran lies on the
desk next to a Kalashnikov. However, the presenter appears to be
different from the person who presented the 'special edition'
broadcast last week to show solidarity with jailed Al Jazeera
journalist Taysir Allouni, sentenced to seven years by a Spanish court
for collaborating with a terrorist organisation.
Allouni - who shot to fame as the satellite channel's Kabul
correspondent and interviewed Osama bin Laden after the 11 September
2001 attacks - also features towards the end of the latest edition. In
a second commercial break, a picture appears on screen showing him
behind bars.
Technically, the 'al-Qaeda news bulletin' is far from professional,
but despite the poor quality of its studio presentation the broadcast
features smart graphics which suggest its post-production could have
been done in a professional TV station (via CRW via DXLD)
** INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM [non]. Hello DXers, Re unID on 17827 [sic –
it was 18727], I gave the audio file on DXLD yahoo group a listen and
the formula of the program (a song followed by a man/woman talking
about the situation in Iraq) reminded me of the Information Radio. The
US psyop to Iraq. So today 10/10/2005 I picked up the station around
1655 UT and as usual a song by an Egyptian singer, followed by a guy
talking about the incidents caused by terrorists in Iraq, mentioning
"Abu Mos'ab Alzarqawi" a lot and giving out phone numbers in Iraq so
anybody with information about "Abu Mos'ab Alzarqawi" or anyone of his
group would call in with info. Followed by another Arabic song, with
no ID, so I kept listening for a while, and then around 1825 I heard
another guy saying "to get more info about the situation in Iraq,
please stay tuned to our frequencies 756 kHz and 846 kHz". By checking
the MW stations in Iraq I'm positive that 756 is Information radio,
but it's the first time for me to know that they have // of 864 [sic]
kHz I tried to get an ID but in vain. But I have to say it's typically
Information Radio style. All the best, guys (Tarek Zeidan, Cairo,
Egypt, DX LISTENING DIGEST) So were you listening on 756 or 18727?
(Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also INTERNATIONAL WATERS
Hi Glenn, sounds like I was affected by the fasting of Ramadan :) I
was listening to it on 18727 I tried AM and USB; both are OK. Today
11 October I kept on monitoring that frequency. It was really loud
and clear around 1700 UT. I could hear the same guy with messages
about abu mos`ab alzarqawi and he gave the phone number 0790 1931643
so anyone with info Alzarqawi or his gang should call ASAP. He said
the magical wordL You may call ``Malumaat Line`` --- malummat is the
Arabic word for Information :) so I think this is the feed for
Information Radio (Radio al-Malumaat); same style. Reports about the
current situation in Iraq followed by a song. I was hoping to
reconfirm the second frequency I heard yesterday, 864, but they
didn't announce any frequencies till I lost them around 1830 UT.
Sorry about the mixup, Glenn. With all my best wishes to you and
yours (Tarek Zeidan, Cairo, Egypt, Oct 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
A transmitter feed? 18727 is in the ITU segment 18168-18780 kHz which
is primarily assigned for fixed military links (which would include an
Information Radio feed, being a military operation). 73s, (Bernd
Trutenau, Lithuania, Oct 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Just what I was
thinking, but from where to where on a rather high frequency which
would skip over the immediate Gulf area? (Glenn Hauser, ibid.)
** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. WorldSpace Stumbles
By Jerry Knight Monday, October 10, 2005; D01
Judging from what happened before WorldSpace Inc. went public in
August, the Silver Spring-based satellite radio service should have
pulled off Washington's hottest initial public offering since the
Roaring '90s.
WorldSpace aims to become the overseas equivalent of XM Satellite
Radio, the nationwide pay-to-listen broadcaster based in the District
that has signed up 5 million subscribers in only three years.
"The Next XM" was all some investors had to hear. They were so eager
to put money into WorldSpace that the IPO was increased from fewer
than 9 million shares to almost 12 million. The original $16 asking
price for the stock was increased twice, first to $20 a share, then
to $21.
Sure enough, WorldSpace shares traded as high as $25 on Aug. 4, the
day of the IPO. It's been downhill since. The stock skidded to just
$14.47 a share at the close of Friday's trading. In two months,
WorldSpace investors have lost $80 million -- making it not the best
local IPO of the year, but effectively tied for the worst. . .
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/09/AR2005100901166_pf.html
(via Mike Cooper, DXLD)
** INTERNATIONAL WATERS [non?]. 9133U, INT'L WATERS/"BAHRAIN",
(Presumed) CMF Radio 1, 2352-0025, Oct. 4, presumed Pashto/Dari.
Arabic music selections thru ToH. YL in language with lengthy
announcements at 0006; 0013 and 0022. Signal varied from barely
audible to a few good peaks. Quite pleased to log this one. For
country counting purposes in this really via Bahrain? I see it listed
at various sources as both Bahrain and International Waters.
6125U, INT'L WATERS/"BAHRAIN", CMF Radio 1, 0042-0112, Oct. 7,
Vernacular/English, Arabic music with breaks for announcements in
various languages, "Radio Mallumat" noted. YL in English at 0109, was
able to copy a few phrases, "..please contact..", "..mariners around
the world" and the freqs 6125, 9133, 15500 kHz and Rewards for Justice
URL. Still going at tune-out. Poor with peaks above static (Scott R.
Barbour, Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, 200' Beverage antennas, dxldyg via
DXLD)
** IRAN. VOIRI, 11650, Oct 9 at 1615 UT tune-in with a listeners`
letterbox program featuring a phone call to a listener from Scotland.
At 1623 UT a summary of the News Headlines and sign off announcements
and schedule at 1624. // 9635 kHz (fair). SIO 444. 73 (Mick Delmage,
Sherwood Park, Alberta, Rx: Collins HF2050, Ant: 7-30 MHz KLM Log
Periodic, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ISRAEL. Just a reminder. Israel changes back to Standard Time at 2
AM Sunday morning, October 9, local Israel time/date. That is, 2300 UT
on October 8 (Doni Rosenzweig, DX LISTENING DIGEST) All SW hour later
** JORDAN. Glenn, a nice signal for the FM service over Radio Jordan,
10/9/05 on 11690, in the clear at 1649 UT, some fading, with English
pops. Radio used: New Sangean ATS909 with the Whip (Daryl Rocker,
Herkimer, NY, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
11690, Radio Jordan, 1458-1532 Oct 9, pop music tune to top of the
hour with 2 time pips, TC and ID: "Time now is 6 O'clock 'Radio
Jordan' the news" At 1504: "With that we end the news that came to you
from Radio Jordan, Amman. The time now is 4 minutes past the hour." A
man gave another ID: "Radio Jordan, 96.3 FM." Return to pop music
programming. Good signal (Rich D'Angelo, PA, NASWA Flashsheet via
DXLD)
Interesting that neither mentions QRM from CRI or BBC, reported to be
co-channel respectively (gh, DXLD)
** KASHMIR. INDIA/PAKISTAN: KASHMIR CLANDESTINE RADIO REPORTED OFF AIR
AFTER QUAKE | Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA
website
Srinagar, 10 October: [Sada-e Hurriyat] The clandestine radio station
which had been been broadcasting from across the Line of Control (LoC)
has gone off the air following the earthquake that hit the region on
Saturday [8 October].
Media organizations here were swamped with hundreds of phone calls
from relatives of those who have gone across the LoC expressing
apprehension about their safety.
The radio was the mouthpiece of the United Jihad Council, an umbrella
organization of various militant groups operating in the Indian side
of Kashmir.
The callers said that the radio used to keep them informed about the
welfare of their kin, but now they had no news and feared they were
all dead.
The radio station, allegedly operating from Pakistan-controlled
Kashmir, stopped broadcasting immediately after the quake, and it
appears that it too has been hit, reports said. Source: IRNA website,
Tehran, in English 0903 gmt 11 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) WTFK? See
also INDIA
** KYRGYZSTAN [and non]. KYRGYZ LEADER PRAISES RADIO LIBERTY | Excerpt
from report by Kyrgyz news agency Kabar
Bishkek, 6 October: Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has received
President of Radio Free Europe/Liberty [RFE/RL] Thomas Dine at the
Government House.
The Kyrgyz president's press service said that during the meeting
Bakiyev had noted RFE/RL's role and importance in meeting the
population's demand for timely information.
Radio Azattyk [Radio Liberty's Kyrgyz Service] was one of the sources
of impartial and reliable information for the Kyrgyz people before the
March revolution [which ousted the former president, Askar Akayev's
government]. The people were well aware of the developments in the
country and the world.
"I personally gave interviews to Azattyk on many occasions," the
president said. "The new government will do everything to strengthen
freedom of speech. The freedom which the media currently enjoys is one
of the foundations for the development of our democracy," Bakiyev
said.
In turn, Thomas Dine expressed satisfaction with the situation in
Kyrgyzstan's information space and Radio Azattyk's role in it. He said
there were quite many adherents of RFE/RL in the country and thanked
the Kyrgyz government for active cooperation, particularly in
preparing joint programmes for the national TV.
[Passage omitted: Radio Liberty's operations detailed] Source: Kabar
news agency, Bishkek, in Russian 0328 gmt 6 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** LATVIA. [VT Merlin B-05 schedule includes]:
LRC 9290 0000 2400 smtwtfs 100 Unknown W EUR
9290 is now hosted by Merlin?
(Roberto Scaglione, Sicily, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEDST)
VT Merlin coordinated this frequency for the Ulbroka transmitter on
behalf of the Latvian operator LVRTC some years ago and is keeping it
registered with the HFCC each season (under "MER"). Since then the
Ulbroka transmitter on 9290 happens to appear as "placeholder" in the
VT Merlin schedule (though the transmitter is not run or managed by VT
Merlin).
HFCC A05:
9290 0000 2400 27,28 ULB 100 250 1234567 270305 301005 D LVA NEW MER
73s, (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, ibid.)
** MALI. R. Mali, 4784.39, Oct 7 2230-0002* Oct 8, Afro-pops, French
pops, French talk, ID. Sign-off with NA. Frequency a little higher
than usual. Fair-good; // 5995 fair but covered by R. Nederland sign-
on at 2359 (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO. 4810 XERTA, Mexico City, 07/10, 0945, 222, MA in Spanish,
religious music, several songs in a row, partial ID: "XERTA 4810 banda
de 60 metros...". Pretty weak signal and affected by data transmission
on same frequency. Used LSB to try to hear the signal (Fernando
Viloria, Guacara - Carabobo State - Venezuela, Rx: Icom IC-720
transceiver; Antenna: 1/4 wave sloper; Antenna tuner: MFJ - 956
(passive), DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO. R. Mil, 6009.99, 1040-1100+ Oct 7, Spanish talk, ID, pops,
ballads; fair-good (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** NEPAL. NEPAL KING IMPOSES TOUGH LAWS ON MEDIA | Excerpt from report
by Gunaraj Luintel by Nepalese newspaper Kantipur on 10 October
Kathmandu, 9 October: His Majesty the King has promulgated a harsh law
that the government had prepared about five months ago to control the
media.
The Rastriya Samachar Samiti, quoting the Office of the Prime Minister
and the Council of Ministers, reported on Sunday [9 October] that His
Majesty the King issued ordinance 2062 [2005 AD] relating to the media
as per Constitution of Nepal 2047 [1990 AD] with a view to making
amendments to media law as well as Company Ordinance 2062.
The government notice does not include the provisions made as per the
amendment to the media law. But a government source said that the
provisions of the ordinance are the same as the draft ordinance that
was made public in mid-May.
The draft ordinance had been passed by the cabinet and sent to the
palace for royal seal [in May]. But the king did not issue the
ordinance after vehement protest from all quarters. The Federation of
Nepalese Journalists [FNJ] had launched a protest against the proposed
ordinance. The government had told the FNJ not to protest against
something which had not been made public. The ordinance has been
issued just ahead of the Dashain [festival] holidays.
Kantipur and The Kathmandu Post on 21 May had published reports on the
government's plan to bring in a harsh law to control the media. The
draft ordinance had said that one media organization would not be
allowed to own more than two forms of mass media and no broadcaster
would be allowed to air the same programme from different locations at
the same time.
The amendment has a provision that bans any individual or individual
organization from owning more than two forms of mass media. The
provision said that no individual or organization would be provided a
licence to operate radio, television and publications at a time. In
the case that an individual or organization has already received a
licence for radio, television and publication then the ordinance
mandates that the individual or organization must choose two forms of
media within a year. Failure to do so will mean revocation of radio
and television licences.
The amendment has also made provision for strict punishment for the
import and export of press materials. Anyone intentionally publishing
or broadcasting news to defame an individual could be fined 200,000-
500,000 rupees or jailed for two years or both, according to the
amendment.
In the ordinance, some "relevant" clauses of Radio Act 2014, Press and
Publications Act 2048, Press Council Act 2048, National Broadcasting
Act 2049, and Defamation Act 2016 have been amended.
As per the ordinance, the government can ban any news material related
to not only His Majesty but also the members of the royal family. The
government can ban foreign news materials and ban any news materials
that could help, support or encourage terrorists, terrorism and
disruptive activities.
The ordinance has a provision of heavy punishment for the editors and
publishers of such materials. The ordinance has increased the fine for
publishing such materials to 100,000 rupees from the existing 10,000
rupees.
Anyone publishing, translating and importing banned materials could be
fined 50,000 rupees. The existing fine is 10,000 rupees. [passage
omitted: the press pass of any journalist violating the code of
conduct could be cancelled anytime, according to the ordinance]
As per the amendment, FM radio stations could broadcast "information-
related programmes" instead of "news-related programmes" [passage
omitted: Now the FM stations might be barred from broadcasting news]
President of FNJ, Bishnu Nisthuri, said that it would be unfortunate
if the long protested draft of the ordinance has been made law. "We
will vehemently protest against that," he told Kantipur. Source:
Kantipur, Kathmandu, in Nepali 10 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** NEW ZEALAND. Radio New Zealand International adds a new documentary
on October 10; it's all about Radio Memories across the Pacific. Hear
'Mail Call' from 1942 directed via 'that GI beam' to New Guinea, a
rare 1953 recording of the regular WXLG Kwajalein sign-off
announcement, and another rare item from WXLE Canton Island. Available
after October 10 as a download at www.rnzi.com, under 'more audio' and
'Mailbox'. Also at http://www.rnzi.com: frequencies, times of
broadcast and program details. DRM transmitter tests begin mid-
November (David Ricquish, Radio Heritage Foundation, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** NIGERIA. V. of Nigeria, 15120, 1815-1900* Oct 1, English; strong
carrier but the usual poor muffled audio along with some hum. Some
programming with very low modulation.
V. of Nigeria, 7255, *1901-1915+ Oct 1, English news, ID. Not very
strong but much better audio than 15120. Good clean audio with no hum
or distortion, but some occasional ham QRM (Brian Alexander,
Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** OMAN. 15140, Radio Sultanate of Oman, 1432-1503, Oct 9, woman
hosting pop music program with Tony Orlando ("Sweet Gypsy Rose"),
Michael Jackson, Mamas and Papas ("California Dreaming"). Bells at
1500 followed by Arabic ID and news read by a man. Poor to fair with
very deep fades (Richard D'Angelo, PA, NASWA Flashsheet via DXLD)
Presumably in English until 1500 (gh, DXLD)
** PAKISTAN. Radio Pakistan, 11570 kHz at 1602 tune-in Oct 9, with
News in English. Commentary followed at 1610. Surprising little about
the Earthquake. A strong signal but very muffled with noticeable polar
flutter, SIO 343. 73 (Mick Delmage, Sherwood Park, Alberta, Rx:
Collins HF2050, Ant: 7-30 MHz KLM Log Periodic, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PAKISTAN [non]. From the Media Network Weblog/DXAsia:
Due to the emergency in South Asia, the BBC and Deutsche Welle have
temporarily extended their services in Urdu:
Deutsche Welle has introduced another Urdu transmission at 0030-0100
UT on 1548, 7130, 9505 and 9825 kHz (instead of the regular English
programme).
The BBC has extended its morning Urdu service (normally 0130-0200) to
0230 UT, but the extra 30 min can be heard on 1413 and 15510 kHz and
also one FM station in Pakistan.
(Source: Alok das Gupta, DXAsia via Andy Sennitt, dxldyg via DXLD)
** PERU. Quito 5/10 2005 Wednesday evening edition:
4299.68 unID Perú "Radio...... Internacional" (?)
New Perúvian station? I listened this evening 2345 to close down 0110
UTC to nonstop Perúvian music of good sound quality just interrupted
twice by short IDs with low modulated microphone: "Transmite Radio...
Internacional(?)". Comments, photos and recordings at:
http://www.malm-ecuador.com 73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
My friend, the DXer Alfredo Cañote, form Chaclacayo, Peru, told me
yesterday about this log:
4300, Radio Bella, Tingo María, 0120 UT, October 05, Spanish. local
songs and folk music from the "sierras" region. Announcements in
Spanish by speakers with little experience as speakers, 34312. Heard
after 1030 too. 73 (Arnaldo Slaen, Argentina, dxing.info via DXLD)
** PERU. 4825, Radio Sicuani, Sicuani, 09/10, 1003, 222, Andean music,
MA in Spanish with program ID: "Radio Sicuani presenta Mundo Agrario",
comments on agricultural issues. TC + ID: "Las 5 de la mañana con 4
minutos, amigos de Radio Sicuani" (Fernando Viloria, Guacara -
Carabobo State - Venezuela, Rx: Icom IC-720 transceiver; Antenna: 1/4
wave sloper; Antenna tuner: MFJ - 956 (passive), DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PERU. Quito 11/10 2005. Tuesday edition:
New recording of 4965.82 unID Perú "Radio Nacional del Perú"
I listened more than one hour this Tuesday morning and you can listen
to the most interesting parts on this long audioclip, so be patient
when downloading 295 kilobyte. Thrilling if it´s really Radio Nacional
del Perú returning to shortwave.
I have not noted any "Santa Mónica" but many "Nacional" and many
"Cusco" so of course I have been trying to hear the two words
"Nacional" and "Cusco" together. The most important of the 6 small
clips is the first one: At second "9" I think there is a "....en
Nacional Cusco...." + much more interesting parts for example second
"37" but I leave this to your opinion.
Comments, photos and recordings at: http://www.malm-ecuador.com
73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, Oct 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Times?
** PERU. 5678.00 Radio Ilucán, Cutervo reactivated. Quito 9/10 2005
5678.00 R. Ilucán, Cutervo (Perú) reactivated on shortwave after being
off air at least one year. The last 10 days I 2-3 times have noted a
strong AM carrier on 5678 kHz without audio; that´s what I thought.
This evening I heard "something" deep under and compared with the
station`s 3rd MW harmonic on 4260.40 kHz and the audio was the same
but hearing one word every 5 minutes is not a very great pleasure.
73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, http://www.malm-ecuador.com DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** PERU. R. Unión, Lima, 6114.85, 0655-0720+ Oct 8, LA music, Spanish
announcements; 0703 many canned IDs. Fair-good.
R. Cusco, 6193.42, 0240-0300+ Sept 30, Spanish canned IDs, huaynos.
Weak but in the clear until 0300 when pretty much covered by BBC slop
from 6195 (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SARAWAK. 7130, Sarawak FM (RTM), Oct 9, 1425-1517; same program
format as heard Oct 8 on 5030; non-stop reciting from the Kor`an till
1458; singing jingle (too faint to make out); ToH woman with news
(India-Pakistan earthquake, etc), for 10 minutes; music program of
light pop songs; 1515 clear singing station jingle for ``Sarawak FM``(
``F. . .M`` was stretched out); several other stations here but still
was considerably better than //5030. Pleased to finally have a
positive ID (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, RX340 + T2FD antenna, dxldyg
via DX LISTENING DIGEST) We rather inconsistently have usually filed
Sabah and Sarawak logs under MALAYSIA (gh)
** SAUDI ARABIA. FILTERING AGENCY BLOCKS ACCESS TO blogger.com | Text
of press release by Paris-based organization Reporters Sans Frontieres
(RSF) on 4 October
Reporters Without Borders today called on the Internet Services Unit
(ISU), the agency that manages web filtering in Saudi Arabia, to
explain why the weblog creation and hosting service blogger.com has
been made inaccessible since 3 October, preventing Saudi bloggers from
updating their blogs.
"Saudi Arabia is one of the countries that censors the internet the
most, but blog services had not until now been affected by the ISU's
filters," the press freedom organization said. "The complete blocking
of blogger.com, which is one of the biggest blog tools on the market,
is extremely worrying. Only China had so far used such an extreme
measure to censor the internet."
Reached by Reporters Without Borders, the ISU recognized that it had
blocked access to blogger.com but did not give any reason. Blogger.com
is the point of entry to the management interface for all the weblogs
hosted on this tool. In other words, this is the webpage bloggers need
to access to update their blogs. According to our tests, names under
the blogger.com domain (for example, http://www.myblog.blogger.com )
are not however being filtered. This means that Saudi internet users
can still access the blogs hosted on this service.
The Saudi authorities acknowledge blacklisting more than 400,000
websites. A very wide range of sites are affected, including political
organizations, non-recognized Islamist movements and publications
containing any kind of reference to sexuality.
The ISU http://www.isu.net.sa is the agency in charge of the Saudi web
censorship system. It manages the gateway used by all local ISPs and
is thus able to control all Internet data exchanges. However, it just
carries out instructions issued by the Saudi security services and
does not itself decided what must be censored. The ISU offers an
online form and e-mail address (abuse@isu.net.sa) that allows internet
uses to report what sites they would like to see blocked. Hundreds of
such requests are received each day and are dealt with by a team
assigned full-time to the job. The ISU's filtering system uses
technology acquired from the US company Secure Computing. Blogger.com
is a service provided by the US company Google. Source: Reporters Sans
Frontieres press release, Paris, in English 4 Oct 05 (via BBCM via
DXLD)
** SENEGAL [non]. Hello Glenn, Here's the mail I received from WADR:
Regular programmes to begin from Monday 10th (2 hours in English and 2
in French) Regards, (Jean-Michel Aubier, France, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Abdou Khadre LÔ abdoulo @ wadr.org a écrit :
salut Jean-Michel, Je vous confirme que nous avons repris nos tests de
transmission sur les 17555 kHz de 08H00 à 09H00 GMT. 30 mn d'anglais
et 30 mn de français. Et à partir de lundi prochain nous allons
commencer notre programmation régulière : 07H00-09H00 (anglais) et
09H00-11H00 (français). En vous remerciant pour l'intérêt que vous
nous porter. -- Abdou. K. LÔ, Bilingual Researcher
West Africa Democracy Radio
Sacré-Coeur 1, Villa N 8408, Dakar, SENEGAL
Cell phones : (00221)569-77-79 / 559-17-07
Office phone : (00221) 869-15-69 Fax : 864-70-09
e-mail (pro) : abdoulo @ wadr.org
e-mails (perso) : abdoulo @ hotmail.fr / abdou.l @ caramail.com
(via Jean-Michel Aubier, DXLD)
This is Abdou LÔ from West Africa Democracy Radio in Dakar (Senegal).
I am very happy to inform you that we have started the second phase of
our test transmission today. Sorry I could not inform in advance. I
hope you can listen to us tomorrow as we featured some of your letters
and emails.
We will broadcast on 17555 kHz 0800-0900 UT. Best wishes and 73 (via
Björn Fransson, Sweden, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Thanks for a tip, Bjorn. On 6 Oct at 0800 real strong and steady
signal of WADR test on 17555. Read also some letters from DXers. Anker
and Dmitri and one guy called Bjorn from the island of Gotland :-).
73, (Jari Savolainen, Finland, ibid.)
And I assume this sentence refers to ```programmation régulière :
07H00-09H00 (anglais) et 09H00-11H00 (français).``` and that appears
further down the correspondence.
And then I read ```We will broadcast on 17555 kHz 08.00-09.00 UTC.
17555 kHz de 08H00 à 09H00 GMT. 30 mn d'anglais et 30 mn de
français.```
07H00-09H00 (anglais) et 09H00-11H00 (français) seems to mean UTC
(anglais) or CET (French time). And voilà, 17555 was heard with half
an hour in English from 0800 and half an hour in French from 0830
until off at 0900 UT today (Oct. 7)! My guess is that it is still via
Rampisham and very typical of the sort of reception I have from that
site in NW England. 73s (Noel R. Green, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
I think he was saying that the immediate broadcasts were one hour long
but the regular ones from 10 Oct would be 4 hours long (gh, DXLD)
** SIKKIM. See INDIA
** SOUTH AFRICA. Glenn -- DXLD readers who aren't swprograms
participants might enjoy taking a stab at these questions.
Channel Africa isn't all that easy a catch here in Eastern North
America -- there are no Caribbean-based or Canada-based relays that
improve the signal's audibility.
Instead, Channel Africa has relied on the WRN and its own live and
on-demand audio to create a North American presence.
I'm working with them to update some programming details, and they
asked me some questions regarding Channel Africa's listenership.
I thought it would interesting to pose those questions to this list.
So...
1. Who is listening to Channel Africa
2. The quality of the signal.
3. The quality of programmes.
4. The content (Is it interesting?)
5. What other topics listeners in that area might be interested in.
Send responses to the senior editor, Research & Monitoring, at
wilkinsonb @ channelafrica.org Thanks - (Richard Cuff / Allentown, PA
USA, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** TAIWAN. ENGLISH-LANGUAGE RADIO TO LOSE LISTENERS AFTER FREQUENCY
SHIFT | Text of report in English by Taiwanese newspaper Taipei Times
website on 7 October
International Community Radio Taipei (ICRT), the only English-language
radio station in the country, may have to say farewell to many of its
faithful listeners in many parts of the country.
"Even those listeners in Taipei County may not be able to hear us in
the future," said a source at the station, who wished to remain
anonymous.
During a telephone interview with the Taipei Times yesterday, the
source said the station did not want to take advantage of the
government but ICRT would hate to lose a lot of its listeners.
According to the source, the Government Information Office (GIO)
issued an official notice to the station a few days ago saying that
ICRT would be downgraded from a "high-power broadcaster" to a "medium-
power broadcaster" because its frequency - FM 100.7 [MHz] - had been
redesignated for "medium-power broadcasters."
The source would not confirm just when the shift will happen.
At present, ICRT's three transmitters are each able to cover an area
within a 60-km radius. The three transmitters cover most parts of the
west coast of Taiwan, from north to south.
However, according to the GIO notice, once the station becomes a
"medium-power broadcaster," the coverage for each transmitter will
drop to a radius of 20 km.
The source said that station officials hope to retain ICRT's current
reach but the two options offered by the GIO would cost too much
money.
"If ICRT becomes a medium-power station, we will need another six to
10 transmitters to maintain a full coverage of the west coast," the
source said.
The GIO has offered another alternative - for ICRT to move its
frequency from the current FM 100.7 to something beyond FM 104, which
belong to "high-power broadcasters."
But that would also cost more than the station can afford.
"As for the GIO's (alternative) proposal, we might need to upgrade our
equipment and spend a lot of money on promotion (of the new
frequency)," the source said.
"That is not something we are capable of at the moment," the source
said. Source: Taipei Times website, Taipei, in English 7 Oct 05 (via
BBCM via DXLD)
** TIBET. 4905, 1437-, Tibet Peoples B.S., Oct 9. A presumed logging
with talk by two women. At fair level // to weaker 4920, poor on 5240
(USB seems to have a CW ute, so used LSB), and 6200 (poor as well, and
possibly cochannel). (Volodya Salmaniw, Victoria, BC, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** UGANDA [non]. Radio Rhino's godfather is dead --- Exiled former
Ugandan President Milton Obote has died (in South Africa, though he
spent most of his exile in Zambia). Although it may not be correct to
say that he ran shortwave opposition station Radio Rhino, it certainly
strongly promoted his cause and so its future may be less certain
without him (Chris Greenway, UK, Oct 10, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** U K. Some BBCWS previews for October --- The most significant new
development begins at the end of October with the change of seasons –
a new, daily hour-long program entitled ``World Have Your Say``.
The hour long show, scheduled to go out each weekday at 1800 UT, will
feature opinion and comment from around the world. Listeners can be
involved in a global conversation 24 hours a day by e-mail, text and
phone via the Have Your Say section of the BBC website. They will be
able to join in a global conversation that allows people of every
nationality from all walks of life, in every country to communicate
with one another. ``If you have an opinion, prepare to have it
challenged and if you don't have one, by the end of the programme
you will,`` says the program’s editor Mark Sandell. Audibility in
North America will be limited – perhaps the European (12095 kHz) and
African services (15400 kHz) may propagate well enough to be usable.
``The Story of the Guitar`` – Crispin Robinson tells the story of
perhaps the most iconic musical instrument on earth. He traces the
history and music of the guitar from its ancient roots to a symbol of
youth, virility and rebellion the world over in the four-part series
``The Story of the Guitar`` from Monday 10 October. Using archive
material, talking and playing with the players themselves, and most
importantly, hearing the music, he explains the history and styles of
different types of guitar music from around the world. This airs in
the ``Music Feature``; try Tuesdays 0032 (Americas), Mondays 1432
(Africa), and Mondays 1832 (Europe).
``The Soul Within Islam`` -- Ever since the terrorist attacks of 9/11,
headlines focusing on Islamic extremism have obscured the story of the
radical change and intense soul-searching that`s going on in many
Muslim countries. Now, in an epic journey, celebrated British Muslim
writer Ziauddin Sardar, travels to five Muslim countries to reveal how
heads of government, intellectuals and opinion formers are seeking a
new interpretation of Islam. In a landmark four-part series from
Wednesday 5 October Sardar visits Turkey, Pakistan, Morocco, Indonesia
and Malaysia to see how changes there are affecting the lives of
ordinary Muslims in The Soul within Islam. This program airs in the
``Documentary 2`` time slot, with two editions airing the same day in
two consecutive time slots – in Europe, for example, at 0805 and 1205
UT Wednesdays. In the Americas, try Sundays 1005 and 1505 for two
consecutive editions in each of two weeks beginning October 5th.
``Return to Sarajevo`` – In November 1995, the Dayton Peace Accord
finally brought the Bosnian war to an end. Allan Little, who wrote the
definitive book on the Balkans War - The Death of Yugoslavia - was in
Sarajevo at the time. Together with Peter Burdin he produced a Sony
Award-winning series about some of those who`d survived the war. Ten
years on, as a voyage of discovery, Allan and Peter revisit the people
who made such an impression on them a decade ago.
They discover how Bosnians have managed to deal with their trauma and
cope with the continuing legacy of that war in the three-part series
Return to Sarajevo from Wednesday 19 October. This program also airs
in the ``Documentary 2`` time slot, with a single new edition each
week for four weeks, unlike the doubling up observed with ``The Soul
Within Islam``.
``Heart and Soul: My Muslim Family`` – During the month of Ramadan,
Heart and Soul joins Muslim families from around the world as they
share the meals and rituals that make this time of year so special and
enjoyable in a three-part series from Wednesday 12 October. For most
practicing Muslims Ramadan is a joyous time but perhaps not for those
who find the prohibition of eating, drinking and smoking in daylight
hours a real trial. Each of the programs has a fly-on-the-wall feel
with family members introducing themselves and inviting us to share in
their activities. ``We meet members of different generations who
reflect on how their lives and aspirations have changed over the
years. We learn about their cooking, their traditions and what their
faith means to them,`` says producer Catherine Fellows. For shortwave,
try Wednesdays 1445 (Europe), 1545 (Americas), and 1945 (Europe).
(Rich Cuff, Easy Listening, Oct NASWA Journal via dxldyg via DXLD)
** U K [non]. UNITED KINGDOM/AMERICAS: BBC LAUNCHES MORNING SHOW FOR
SPANISH SPEAKERS WORLDWIDE | Text of press release by BBC World
Service on 10 October
Spanish speakers across the world will be connected via the BBC's new
global interactive radio and online show, BBC Mundo Hoy.
Launching at 10 a.m. GMT on Monday 10 October on BBC partner stations
and online at bbcmundo.com, this hour-long weekday news and current
affairs programme is an unprecedented pan-Spanish American forum for
exchange of views and opinions on issues spanning the Spanish-speaking
world.
BBC Mundo Hoy is presented by Luis Fernando Restrepo, who will be
connecting the audiences through live link-ups with the BBC's
unparalleled network of correspondents in Latin America, Spain and the
UK.
The show also offers news summaries, documentaries and interviews with
key people making the news.
A video on bbcmundo.com introduces the team to listeners and online
diaspora audiences around the world.
Julia Zapata, head of the BBC Spanish American Service, says: "Our
common language is what truly unites us, and BBC Mundo Hoy aims to be
the meeting point for the Spanish-speaking world, setting the day's
agenda and providing the radio and online forum for a free exchange of
opinion."
Luis del Valle, BBC Spanish American Radio Editor, adds: "The BBC
Mundo Hoy team is as diverse as life itself and our journalists are
speckled all over the world. We will be using this brilliant force to
provide our audiences with more top-notch news and information, and to
generate a lively exchange of experiences, ideas and dreams among
these very audiences."
BBC Mundo Hoy can be heard on the following partner stations in Latin
America:
Argentina: FM Universidad de Belgrano 90.9 [MHz FM].
Bolivia: Radio Fides, national broadcaster.
Colombia: RCN, through any of their stations on FM, La FM, 106.9 FM de
la Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, HJCK El Mundo en Bogotá 89.9 FM.
Ecuador: Radio City 89.3 FM in Guayaquil and 99.7 FM in Salinas,
Antena 1 90.5 FM in Cuenca.
Mexico: Teleradio AW 1280 AM, Radio Metrópoli 1150 AM.
Puerto Rico: WPAB-550-Ponce.
Satellite channel: Sirius in EEUU [USA] and in Mexico on channel 182
Source: BBC World Service press release, London, in English 10 Oct 05
(via BBCM via DXLD)
** U K. BBC LAUNCHES CASE FOR NEW LICENCE FEE SETTLEMENT | Text of
press release from BBC on 11 October
The BBC today unveiled its case for a new licence fee settlement to
ensure that it continues to deliver value to licence payers as we move
towards a fully digital Britain.
Its vision, endorsed by the Government's Green Paper earlier this
year, is for high quality original content and services that will be
universally available to everyone, irrespective of age or income.
With digital switchover, all licence payers will be able to access all
BBC output, wherever they live in the country, thanks to the
commitment to build a universal digital infrastructure for TV and
radio.
Excellent content and services will be received on normal television
and radio sets, but also on mobile devices and via broadband, with all
public service content available for free for up to seven days after
first transmission.
The BBC will also be opening up its archive, built over many years
from the public's licence fee payments, and will invest in High
Definition TV to ensure it is available to all and not confined to
subscription services.
New technology will also allow the BBC to deliver state-of-the-art
local television services and radio stations, as well as investing in
production and a presence around the UK, representing the country more
effectively than in the past.
Today's announcement puts a cost on the vision over seven years and
shows how the BBC will meet more than 70 per cent of those costs
itself.
It is the first time the BBC has made its case for a new licence fee
settlement so openly and it follows public consultation and scrutiny
by the BBC Governors and their independent advisors, as well as public
response to the Government's Green Paper proposals.
The BBC proposes a licence fee increase from April 2007 based on RPI
plus 2.3 per cent a year. In today's prices, this means 150.50 pounds
a year per household by 2013, compared to the current 126.50 pounds.
That amounts to an average annual 3.14 pounds increase per household,
excluding RPI, from the start of the next Charter, while the licence
fee is still declining steadily as a proportion of disposable income.
It does not include the costs of targeted help for special groups when
the analogue signal is switched off.
The funding decision will be taken by the government next year as part
of the process around the BBC's new Royal Charter starting in 2007.
This will ultimately determine how the BBC can fulfil its public
purposes, meet audience expectations and lead the next phase of the
digital revolution.
The additional spend required to meet the vision outlined in the Green
Paper will total 5.5bn pounds over the seven-year period to 2013/14.
However, the BBC will meet more than 70 per cent of this itself, not
from additional licence fee funds.
Self-help measures already under way at the BBC, including job losses,
rationalizing processes and commercial disposals and dividends, will
contribute 3.9bn pounds, leaving a funding gap of 1.6bn pounds which
could be closed by an RPI plus 1.8 per cent settlement.
However, to meet additional industry costs related to switchover, such
as the marketing costs of DigitalUK (SwitchCo) and spectrum tax, the
total increase needed is a further RPI plus 0.5 per cent, taking the
total to RPI plus 2.3 per cent [sentence as published].
MORI research conducted in March this year assessed audiences'
appetite for the plans. Over 80 per cent said it was important for the
BBC to build out digital.
Earlier research on the audience's willingness to pay showed that 81
per cent believe the licence fee represents good value for money with
over 40 per cent being prepared to pay twice the current licence fee
or more.
Launching the proposal, the BBC's Director-General Mark Thompson said:
"Our audiences, rightly, have very high expectations of the BBC. They
themselves are driving incredible change by the way they want to
access our programmes and services.
"The BBC needs to transform itself to ensure we are providing the very
best content, accessible to and valued by everyone across Britain, and
the licence fee will help us achieve our vision to be the best
creative digital broadcaster and content provider for audiences in the
world."
BBC Chairman Michael Grade said: "Our document Building Public Value
outlined the BBC's vision for serving the public in the digital age.
"The government's subsequent Green Paper endorsed and refined that
vision after consultation with the public. This bid has been
thoroughly and independently scrutinised by the Governors. We commend
it to government as an efficient business plan designed to meet
licence payers' expectations at the lowest cost."
The predicted licence fee at the end of the current Charter is 128.50
pounds in today's prices based on the current LF settlement.
The Equation:
Costs
Quality Content - 1.6bn pounds
(Learning; Drama, Comedy/Ents, Arts, Music, Journalism, Local
services)
Digital Services - 1.2bn pounds
(On-demand; Navigation and Search; active engagement)
Digital Infrastructure - 0.7bn pounds
(DTT/DAB build out; Free Satellite; Internet distribution; HDTV)
Local Relevance - 0.6bn pounds
(Local TV; new radio stations, OpenCentres/ Buses, Out of London)
Base costs increase - 1.4bn pounds
(super-inflation in broadcast costs etc) = 5.5bn pounds
Self Help
Efficiencies on overhead and production processes - 2.6 bn pounds
Modernizing Licence Fee collection channels - 0.2bn pounds
Capturing household growth - 0.7bn pounds
Commercial dividends - 0.4bn pounds
= 3.9bn pounds
Funding Gap = 1.6bn pounds
Closing the gap = RPI plus 1.8 per cent
Switchover costs
Digital UK costs - 200m pounds
Spectrum Tax - 300m pounds
= 500m pounds cumulative
Total Funding = RPI plus 2.3 per cent per year from 2007/2008 to
2013/14
This will mean a licence fee per household of 150.50 pounds a year by
2013, the equivalent of an average annual increase of 3.14 pounds per
household, each year from the start of the next Charter.
Annual licence fee increase (in 2005/2006 prices, excluding RPI):
Now - 126.50 pounds
2006/2007 - 128.50 pounds
2007/2008 - 131.00 pounds
2008/2009 - 134.00 pounds
2009/2010 - 137.50 pounds
2010/2011 - 140.50 pounds
2011/2012 - 143.50 pounds
2012/2013 - 147.00 pounds
2013/2014 - 150.50 pounds Source: BBC press release, London, in
English 11 Oct 05 (via BBCM via DXLD)
** U S A. ERT Delano spurs: 17838.52 and 17571.48, 2050-2100+ Oct 7.
Weak spurs from a strong 17705 with Greek music and talk. Spurs were a
little unstable, both exactly 133.52 kHz from 17705 (Brian Alexander,
Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) As we pointed out before, the
upper one not to be confused with R. Imperial, El Salvador (gh, DXLD)
** U S A. URBONO monitoring: not today. Sporadic checks of WWL/URBONO
via WHRI the past few days continue to show usage contrary to the
published schedules on the WWL and WHRI websites which claim
this is only: M-F at 12-14 on 11785, M-F 14-20 on 15285.
Thu Oct 6 at 1650, no signal on 15285
Sun Oct 9 at 2000 URBONO on 15285, and until 2200, then WHR
programming; (and separate WHR programming on 9840, once used at this
time)
Mon Oct 10 at 1514, 15285 with WHR programming, not URBONO, same at
1800 check (Glenn Hauser, Oct 10, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
And on Tuesday Oct 11: 11785 not on the air before 1400, but 15285 was
on before and after 1400 with WHR programming, as per the original
WHRI scheduling. I will not make any assumptions yet that the relays
are permanently over, due to their erratic appearances so far (Glenn
Hauser, ibid.)
** U S A [and non]. Like many of you I noted apparent TA carriers all
up and down the dial, from 585 on up, including 684, 891, 1134, 1206,
1215... honestly couldn't tell if the Saudi on 1521 was in or not, as
local Branson Information TIS station KLFJ-1550 is back on, with
horribly overmodulated audio (it's probably FM'ing as well!) producing
raucous sideband splatter a whopping *70* (SEVENTY!) kHz above and
below their fundamental!! Worst case I've ever seen --- and we all
thought Eye-Bock noise was bad, hi! (Randy Stewart, Springfield MO,
Oct 4, IRCA via DXLD)
At 00:35 AM CDT, 10/4, am hearing a strong whistle/chirp type
interference on 1540 and 1560; suspect a station on 1550 has
modulation problems. One possibility is my local on 1550, WCSJ 1550,
Morris, IL about 20 miles SW of my location. Loop bearing in NE/SW
which corresponds to Morris. Anyone else hearing this? Also noted
evening of 10/2 (Tom Jasinski, IRCA via DXLD)
Sorry, just now going through IRCA digests. I just posted to the list
my tale of woe regarding my local KLFJ-1550 and its current 140 kHz-
wide bandwidth --- and yes, it does whistle and chirp horribly on 1540
and 1560, in between mod peaks. No doubt that's what you're hearing
(Randy Stewart, Springfield MO, ibid.)
** U S A. KTVE DT 27 is a minimal DT station seemingly run out of a
closet somewhere. Audio levels are low and the video seems to be taken
from an antenna OTA. While I can get the analog here great (provided
there isn't any tropo to Springfield, MO and Memphis), the digital is
located in El Dorado AR and its normal range is barely outside the
city limits. No subchannel, and no HD (I have to go by labels, since I
don't have an HD set or plan on in the near future). First logged @
8:10am oct 4. Hoping I'd get the elusive state of Mississippi (DTV),
but not to be this morning. Or KTAL DT 15 (logged once this spring,
the same day I got KSLA last). (Fritze, KC5KBV, Prentice, Star City,
AR EM 43, Oct 4, WTFDA via DXLD)
** U S A. SEX AND DIRTY WORDS
By Frank Ahrens Sunday, October 9, 2005; F07
After receiving more than 1 million complaints about objectionable
radio and television programming last year, the Federal
Communications Commission has come to the realization that there may
be some interest about racy shows on the airwaves.
To that end, the agency on Friday launched a new indecency,
profanity and obscenity section on its Web site. (Simmer down.)
Outraged or merely interested listeners and viewers can go to
http://www.fcc.gov/eb/oip/Welcome.html There, they will be tutored
on the difference between obscene, profane and indecent content;
told how to file a complaint, find out who handles it at the agency;
and see what happens to the complaint, depicted in a flow chart that
would make a string theorist's brain explode. (Actually, it looks more
like a whiteboard pitch from the dot-com era for a start-up called
Zipperhead.com or something.)
This is a good move by the FCC because the agency's regulations on
indecency are murky at best to outsiders and tough to interpret even
for the agency itself. Also, in recent years, the complaint process
has been dominated by interest groups such as the sober-minded
Parents Television Council, which has a "file an FCC complaint"
function on its Web site. PTC members flooded the FCC with hundreds of
thousands of complaints in 2004. That's fine -- it's the new
electronic democracy -- but viewers and listeners who are not
ideologically aligned with such interest groups may not want to file
their complaint through partisan Web sites.
The new pages sport a smattering of statistics. For instance: In
2004, the agency received 1,405,419 complaints about 314 programs.
Through June of this year, viewers and listeners have filed 163,177
complaints about 528 programs. A facile read on the data suggests
fewer people are offended this year than last but that more programs
are offensive.
I'll tell you what's offensive on television: When ABC ends "Lost"
at 10:05 p.m. on Wednesday nights so the next show (in this case,
"Invasion") will get a portion of "Lost's" monster Nielsen ratings.
Why is this offensive? Because my DVR stops recording "Lost" at 10
p.m. and each show invariably ends with a jaw-dropping cliff-hanger.
Yes, yes, I now know I must extend the recording time. Lesson
learned.
Still, talk about grounds for an FCC fine.
(c) 2005 The Washington Post Company (via Mike Cooper, DXLD)
** WESTERN SAHARA [non]. Hola a todos: Después de muchos días sin
poderla oír, de nuevo escucho la Radio Nacional Saharaui en 1550. En
estos momentos en árabe, quedando a la espera del programa en español
SIO/444. Mejor en USB para evitar las interferencias de R. Farda, TWR
y Capital Gold en 1548, que eran las que predominaban los días
precedentes (Ignacio Sotomayor, Spain, Oct 10, dxldyg via DXLD)
Estimado amigo Glenn: Por si te resulta de interés para tu archivo
sonoro, te adjunto la grabación que hice ayer por la noche de la Radio
Nacional Saharaui en 1550 a las 2301. Paz y DX (Ignacio Sotomayor,
Segovia, Castilla, España (40º57'00''N-4º07'10''W), Rcvx: ICOM R-75;
SONY ICF -SW7600, Anx: Hilo largo de 20 metros y Balun; KIWA Pocket
Loop, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Tnx, Ignacio! Added to the Station Sounds archive in the dxldyg. The
precise pronunciation of the key word, and hence its proper spelling
still eludes me: the initial announcement sounds like ``Radio Nacional
Saháraui, Voz del Pueblo Sájaro[?]``, but a sung jingle later is more
like ``Sa-ha-rá-ui``. In between the announcer gives frequencies as
1550 kHz OM, 74.60 [sic!] MHz OC (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ZANZIBAR. R. Tanzania-Zanzibar, 11735, 1755-2059* Oct 1. Swahili
talk, drums, 1800-1810 time pips and English news. 1810 back to
Swahili with talk and local ME style music. Sign-off with NA; fair
(Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ZIMBABWE [and non]. Hi Glenn, Voice of the People, VOP, (from
Madagascar to Zimbabwe), 7120, 1700-1800 daily is still severely
jammed from within Zimbabwe. Severe jamming of this frequency and
time. This is one of the same Chinese jamming transmitters sent to
Zimbabwe early this year (March) and utilised by the State to block SW
Radio Africa's transmissions from abroad. 73 (David Pringle-Wood,
Harare, Zimbabwe, Oct 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Voice of the People (VOP) from Madagascar to Zimbabwe, 7120, 1700-1800
daily. Yet again severely jammed from within Zimbabwe this evening
(David Pringle-Wood, Zimbabwe, Oct 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DX-PEDITIONS
++++++++++++
LATEST COORONG DXPEDITION REPORT
Hi Guys, Here's the DXpedition report from a couple of weekends to the
Coorong in August at
http://www.dxing.info/dxpeditions/coorong_2005_08.dx
Ummm not quite sure what else there is to say (Craig Edwards, Mawson
Lakes SA 5095, IRCA via DXLD)
PROPAGATION
+++++++++++
The geomagnetic field ranged from quiet to active levels with minor to
major storm conditions observed at high latitudes. Geomagnetic
activity was mostly quiet to unsettled until midday on 07 October when
a coronal hole high speed stream moved into a geoeffective position.
Isolated active periods were observed late on 07 October and early on
08 October at middle latitudes. Isolated active periods were observed
at high latitudes midday on 07 October while active to major storm
periods were observed through most of the day on 08 October, again at
high latitudes. Conditions decreased to mostly quiet to unsettled late
on 08 October and continued that way through the rest of the period.
FORECAST OF SOLAR AND GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY 12 OCTOBER - 07 NOVEMBER
Solar activity is expected to be very low to low. No greater than 10
MeV proton events are expected. The greater than 2 MeV electron flux
at geosynchronous orbit is expected to be at high levels on 12 – 22
October, 29 October – 02 November, and 06 – 07 November.
The geomagnetic field is expected to range from quiet to minor storm
levels. Active to minor storm levels are possible on 15 October and 04
November due to a recurrent coronal hole high speed wind stream.
Otherwise, expect quiet to unsettled conditions.
:Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt
:Issued: 2005 Oct 11 2214 UTC
# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Environment Center
# Product description and SEC contact on the Web
# http://www.sec.noaa.gov/wwire.html
#
# 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table
# Issued 2005 Oct 11
#
# UTC Radio Flux Planetary Largest
# Date 10.7 cm A Index Kp Index
2005 Oct 12 80 5 2
2005 Oct 13 85 5 2
2005 Oct 14 85 8 3
2005 Oct 15 85 15 3
2005 Oct 16 85 8 3
2005 Oct 17 85 5 2
2005 Oct 18 85 5 2
2005 Oct 19 85 8 3
2005 Oct 20 85 8 3
2005 Oct 21 85 5 2
2005 Oct 22 85 5 2
2005 Oct 23 85 12 3
2005 Oct 24 85 12 3
2005 Oct 25 85 12 3
2005 Oct 26 85 8 3
2005 Oct 27 80 10 3
2005 Oct 28 75 12 3
2005 Oct 29 75 12 3
2005 Oct 30 75 8 3
2005 Oct 31 75 5 2
2005 Nov 01 75 5 2
2005 Nov 02 75 5 2
2005 Nov 03 75 10 3
2005 Nov 04 75 20 4
2005 Nov 05 75 10 3
2005 Nov 06 75 10 3
2005 Nov 07 75 10 3
(from http://www.sec.noaa.gov/radio via DXLD) ###